British heroes

JOHN THYNNE (assistant editor)

What would your reaction be if someone in your office said: "That Monty's rubbish – he's never won anything." Well, mine would be outrage. I would scold the offender with details of the great Scot's eight Order of Merit titles, years in the world's top 10, runner-up spots at the Open and US Open and heroic performances in the Ryder Cup. Someone who has been ranked second in the world is clearly not "rubbish" and deserves our respect.

As Wimbledon kicks off my favourite season of sport (two weeks of top-class tennis followed by the greatest golf Major of them all) the inevitable daft comments about the "other Tiger" – Tim Henman – have begun to surface.

"Henman's rubbish" comments have been circulating and all but myself and one other colleague have been forced to defend the plucky Englishman. Like Monty, Henman was also ranked in the world's top five. Like Monty he has given us Brits masses to cheer about, and, like Monty, it's time we gave him a break. Here's to Tim Henman and Colin Montgomerie – two of the best players YET to win a Major. A little optimistic? We can dream...